Documented violations - actual number of cases may be higher
Nepal - 2012
Population: 29,950,000
Capital: Kathmandu
Capital: Kathmandu
Dozens of trade union members were threatened, dismissed or beaten. Nepali migrants are particularly exploited. The social partners
social partners
Unions and employers or their representative organisations.
signed an agreement to maintain industrial peace.
ILO Core Conventions Ratified:
29 Forced Labour (1930) 98 Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining (1949) 100 Equal Remuneration for Work of Equal Value (1951) 105 Abolition of Forced Labour (1957) 111 Discrimination in Employment and Occupation (1958) 138 Minimum Age for Employment (1973) 182 Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention (1999)
29 Forced Labour (1930) 98 Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining (1949) 100 Equal Remuneration for Work of Equal Value (1951) 105 Abolition of Forced Labour (1957) 111 Discrimination in Employment and Occupation (1958) 138 Minimum Age for Employment (1973) 182 Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention (1999)
reported violations - 2012
Background
The political situation remains unstable. The prime minister, Jhala Nath Khanal, resigned on 14 August, having failed to break the deadlock in the talks aimed at adopting a new constitution. On 28 August, just days before the expiry of the Constituent Assembly’s mandate, Baburam Bhattarai, a senior member of the United Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist, became the fourth prime minister in four years. The Constituent Assembly’s term was renewed for a fourth time, and it was given six months to come to an agreement on the new constitution. The many human rights violations committed during and after the civil war remain largely unpunished.
The International Federation of Journalists and its affiliate, the Federation of Nepali Journalists, have underlined that journalists are increasingly exposed to threats from business and political circles.
ILO Core Conventions Ratified:
29 Forced Labour (1930) 98 Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining (1949) 100 Equal Remuneration for Work of Equal Value (1951) 105 Abolition of Forced Labour (1957) 111 Discrimination in Employment and Occupation (1958) 138 Minimum Age for Employment (1973) 182 Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention (1999)
29 Forced Labour (1930) 98 Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining (1949) 100 Equal Remuneration for Work of Equal Value (1951) 105 Abolition of Forced Labour (1957) 111 Discrimination in Employment and Occupation (1958) 138 Minimum Age for Employment (1973) 182 Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention (1999)
Population: 29,950,000
Capital: Kathmandu
Capital: Kathmandu
reported violations- 2012
Documented violations - actual number of cases may be higher
Trade union rights in law
Although basic trade union rights are guaranteed, excessive restrictions apply. The right to freedom of association
freedom of association
The right to form and join the trade union of one’s choosing as well as the right of unions to operate freely and carry out their activities without undue interference.
See Guide to the ITUC international trade union rights framework is established in both the interim Constitution of 2007 and the Labour Act, but non-nationals may not be elected as trade union officials. The thresholds for union formation as well as for the creation of federations and confederations are excessively high, and a maximum of four unions are allowed per enterprise. Workers, including civil servants, have the right to join a union and to bargain collectively, and the latter right has also been extended to federations and confederations. However, the right to strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.
See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike is limited, and the government may stop a strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.
See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike or suspend a trade union’s activities if the strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.
See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike disturbs the peace or is deemed to adversely affect the interests of the nation. Also, to call a strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.
See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike , 60% of the union’s membership must agree on the action in a secret ballot, and the union must announce the strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.
See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike at least 30 days in advance. Strikes are banned for workers in charge of security or surveillance teams in a company and for workers in “essential services essential services Services the interruption of which would endanger the life, personal safety or health of the whole or part of the population. Can include the hospital sector, electricity and water supply services, and air traffic control. Strikes can be restricted or even prohibited in essential services.
See Guide to the ITUC international trade union rights framework
”, which are broadly defined to include sectors such as banking and hotels.
See Guide to the ITUC international trade union rights framework is established in both the interim Constitution of 2007 and the Labour Act, but non-nationals may not be elected as trade union officials. The thresholds for union formation as well as for the creation of federations and confederations are excessively high, and a maximum of four unions are allowed per enterprise. Workers, including civil servants, have the right to join a union and to bargain collectively, and the latter right has also been extended to federations and confederations. However, the right to strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.
See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike is limited, and the government may stop a strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.
See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike or suspend a trade union’s activities if the strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.
See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike disturbs the peace or is deemed to adversely affect the interests of the nation. Also, to call a strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.
See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike , 60% of the union’s membership must agree on the action in a secret ballot, and the union must announce the strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.
See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike at least 30 days in advance. Strikes are banned for workers in charge of security or surveillance teams in a company and for workers in “essential services essential services Services the interruption of which would endanger the life, personal safety or health of the whole or part of the population. Can include the hospital sector, electricity and water supply services, and air traffic control. Strikes can be restricted or even prohibited in essential services.
See Guide to the ITUC international trade union rights framework
”, which are broadly defined to include sectors such as banking and hotels.
Freedom of association / Right to organize
Principles
Freedom of association :
- >The right to freedom of association is enshrined in the Constitution.
- >The right to freedom of association is regulated by a Labour Code.
- >The right to freedom of association is regulated by law.
Anti-Union discrimination:
- >The law prohibits anti-union discrimination, but does not provide adequate means of protection against it.
Although the 1992 Trade Union act prohibits anti-union discrimination in respect of employment, there is still a need for more explicit provisions in law to protect workers against anti-union discrimination.
Restrictions
Legal barriers to the establishment of organizations:
- >Excessive representativity or minimum number of members required for the establishment of a union
- At enterprise level, the formation of a union requires 25% of the workforce and a minimum of ten people.
Restrictions on workers' right to form and join organizations of their own choosing:
- >Single trade union system imposed by law and/or a system banning or limiting organising at a certain level (enterprise, industry and/or sector, regional and/or territorial, national)
- A maximum of four unions are allowed per enterprise.
- >Restrictions on trade unions' right to establish branches, federation and confederation or to affiliate with national and international organisations
- Trade union federations can be formed through the association of 50 company unions, or of 5,000 individuals working in enterprises of the same nature. A confederation requires ten federations to join together, of which six must be from the formal economy. In the informal economy, 500 people in similar work are required in order to create a federation, whilst in agriculture a minimum of 5,000 workers are needed, covering at least 20 districts and with at least 100 people from each district.
Categories of workers prohibited or limited in law from forming or joining a union, or from holding a union office:
- >Armed forces
- >Police
- >Non-national or migrant workers
- Non-Nepalese can be members of a union. However, only Nepalese nationals can be elected as trade union officials.
Right to collective bargaining
Principles
Right to collective bargaining:
- >The right to collective bargaining is enshrined in the Constitution.
- >The right to collective bargaining is recognised by law.
A 2007 verdict by the Supreme Court confirmed that the right to collective bargaining was not restricted to company unions but also applied to federations and confederations.
Right to strike
Principles
Right to strike:
- >The right to strike is regulated by a Labour Code.
Restrictions
Legal barriers to lawful strike actions:
- >Obligation to observe an excessive quorum or to obtain an excessive majority in a ballot to call a strike
- A strike can be held, but only following a secret ballot of 60% of the union's membership.
- >Excessively long prior notice / cooling-off period
- A union must give at least 30 days' notice before going on strike.
Undue interference by authorities or employers during the course of a strike:
- >Authorities' or employers''' power to unilaterally prohibit, limit, suspend or cease a strike action
- The government may stop a strike or suspend a trade union's activities if it disturbs the peace or is deemed to adversely affect the economic interests of the nation.
Limitations or ban on strikes in certain sectors:
- >Discretionary determination or excessively long list of "essential services" in which the right to strike is prohibited or severely restricted
- Legislation denies the right to strike to employees providing essential services. In recent years, the government has used that legislation to ban strikes in many sectors, including banking, telecommunications, electricity, water supply, road, air and sea transport, the print industry, the government, press, and hotels and restaurants.
- >Other limitations (e.g. in EPZs)
- A worker in charge of security or surveillance teams in a company is not allowed to start a strike.
ILO Core Conventions Ratified:
29 Forced Labour (1930) 98 Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining (1949) 100 Equal Remuneration for Work of Equal Value (1951) 105 Abolition of Forced Labour (1957) 111 Discrimination in Employment and Occupation (1958) 138 Minimum Age for Employment (1973) 182 Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention (1999)
29 Forced Labour (1930) 98 Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining (1949) 100 Equal Remuneration for Work of Equal Value (1951) 105 Abolition of Forced Labour (1957) 111 Discrimination in Employment and Occupation (1958) 138 Minimum Age for Employment (1973) 182 Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention (1999)
Population: 29,950,000
Capital: Kathmandu
Capital: Kathmandu
reported violations - 2012
Documented violations - actual number of cases may be higher
In practice
Nepali migrants still severely exploited in the Gulf: An estimated six million Nepali workers live abroad. Around 700,000 of these find themselves in the Persian Gulf States. Every day, 600 migrants leave Nepal legally, whilst another 600 migrate illegally. They are often employed in the hospitality and construction industries, or as security guards and domestic workers. In January, Anti-Slavery International and the ITUC launched a campaign to denounce the severe exploitation they often face in the Gulf. Many fall into the hands of unregulated recruitment agencies, which promise them a better living abroad. They usually have to borrow large sums of money to be able to pay the recruitment agent, only to find themselves being paid half of what they were promised or not being paid at all once they reach the Gulf. With the exception of Bahrain, the sponsorship system remains commonplace across the region. Under this system, migrant workers’ visas are linked to one employer or ‘sponsor’, and in most countries they have no right to seek alternative employment. Combined with the low pay, this practice means that many thousands of migrant workers find themselves trapped in exploitation or even forced labour.
Pay rises and social security in exchange for peaceful industrial relations: The main trade unions and employers’ associations signed an agreement in March providing for increased pay and the creation of a social security net. In exchange for this agreement, the social partners
social partners
Unions and employers or their representative organisations.
pledged to maintain industrial peace for four years, and not to resort to any form of lockouts, closures or strikes that contravene the labour legislation. In 2011, trade unions campaigned to urge the government to ratify ILO
International Labour Organization
A tripartite United Nations (UN) agency established in 1919 to promote working and living conditions. The main international body charged with developing and overseeing international labour standards.
See tripartism, ITUC Guide to international trade union rights Convention 87.
See tripartism, ITUC Guide to international trade union rights Convention 87.
ILO Core Conventions Ratified:
29 Forced Labour (1930) 98 Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining (1949) 100 Equal Remuneration for Work of Equal Value (1951) 105 Abolition of Forced Labour (1957) 111 Discrimination in Employment and Occupation (1958) 138 Minimum Age for Employment (1973) 182 Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention (1999)
29 Forced Labour (1930) 98 Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining (1949) 100 Equal Remuneration for Work of Equal Value (1951) 105 Abolition of Forced Labour (1957) 111 Discrimination in Employment and Occupation (1958) 138 Minimum Age for Employment (1973) 182 Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention (1999)
Population: 29,950,000
Capital: Kathmandu
Capital: Kathmandu
reported violations - 2012
Documented violations - actual number of cases may be higher
Violations
Two microcredit institutions flout trade union rights: On 10 January, three trade union activists received beatings from managers of Gramin Bikas Mahila Utthan Manch, a microcredit agency. The union secretary was dismissed and five members had their wages suspended for belonging to a union. During the same month, 200 workers from the Swabalamban Micro Finance Development Bank were confronted with acts of harassment by the management, which was refusing to bargain collectively. By the end of the year, the Bank had accepted to engage in a dialogue with the union.
Education sector trade unionist threatened: The General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT) has reported that Priya Poudel, vice president of the union at the Budhanilakantha school, was threatened with dismissal on account of his trade union activities.
Police charge on striking workers from Nepal Pharmaceutical Labs: On 28 April, Nepal Pharmaceutical Labs management called in the police, who charged against striking workers with brutal force. More than 20 workers were injured, including ten trade unionists. The strike
strike
The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.
See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike had been called by the Nepal Independent Chemical and Iron Workers’ Union (NICIWU), affiliated to the General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT). The union ultimately managed to negotiate an agreement with the management.
See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike had been called by the Nepal Independent Chemical and Iron Workers’ Union (NICIWU), affiliated to the General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT). The union ultimately managed to negotiate an agreement with the management.
Court rules in favour of 133 dismissed workers: On 14 September, a labour court ordered that the 133 workers dismissed by Shanti Sewa Griha after trying to join a union be reinstated and paid compensation. Shanti Sewa Griha is an organisation providing assistance to people suffering from leprosy.
Lock-out at Shangri-La Casino: On 1 December, the management at Shangri-La Casino in Kathmandu staged a 40-day lockout
lockout
A form of industrial action whereby an employer refuses work to its employees or temporarily shuts down operations.
following the registration of a union by its employees. The Nepal Independent Hotel, Casino and Restaurant Workers’ Union, affiliated to the General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT), protested against the lockout
lockout
A form of industrial action whereby an employer refuses work to its employees or temporarily shuts down operations.
to the Labour Ministry.
Himal Power Ltd staunchly rejects social dialogue : On 15 December, in Dolakha district, Himal Power Ltd (HPL) dismissed 89 employees belonging to the Nepal Independent Chemical and Iron Workers’ Union (NICIWU), affiliated to the General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT). GEFONT has reported that the dismissals are directly linked to the management’s refusal to talk to the union within the framework of collective bargaining
collective bargaining
The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.
See collective bargaining agreement
negotiations. The company has remained staunch in its rejection of talks for many months, in spite of interventions by the Labour Ministry and a labour court. HPL is a joint venture comprising Norwegian and Nepalese investors.
See collective bargaining agreement
negotiations. The company has remained staunch in its rejection of talks for many months, in spite of interventions by the Labour Ministry and a labour court. HPL is a joint venture comprising Norwegian and Nepalese investors.
ILO Core Conventions Ratified:
29 Forced Labour (1930) 98 Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining (1949) 100 Equal Remuneration for Work of Equal Value (1951) 105 Abolition of Forced Labour (1957) 111 Discrimination in Employment and Occupation (1958) 138 Minimum Age for Employment (1973) 182 Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention (1999)
29 Forced Labour (1930) 98 Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining (1949) 100 Equal Remuneration for Work of Equal Value (1951) 105 Abolition of Forced Labour (1957) 111 Discrimination in Employment and Occupation (1958) 138 Minimum Age for Employment (1973) 182 Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention (1999)
Population: 29,950,000
Capital: Kathmandu
Capital: Kathmandu
reported violations - 2012
Documented violations - actual number of cases may be higher